Up above the world so high 

METEOR MARVEL – A meteor shower will light up the Cape night next weekend.

Hundreds of meteors will streak across Cape skies Dec. 14

Many long-time residents of Cape Cod surely have fond memories of watching shooting stars streak above the tranquil nocturnal sky. Cape Codders will have the opportunity to rekindle these memories Dec. 14 as the Geminid meteor shower lights up the heavens.

The Geminid meteor shower takes place every year in mid-December. The peak of the shower will occur overnight on Saturday the 14th and into Sunday morning, when up to 120 meteors per hour are expected to illuminate the skies above Cape Cod.

The only fly in the ointment for viewers will be the waxing moon, which will be 91 percent full. Despite the “light pollution,” amateur astronomers and anyone else who ventures outdoors to enjoy the show can expect to see upwards of 75 shooting stars per hour. This meteor shower is anticipated by experts to be the most spectacular of the year, competing only with the Perseid meteor shower, which occurs in mid-August.

To fully enjoy the phenomenon, observers are advised to move as far away from city lights as possible. One should seek a dark area that offers panoramic views of the sky from horizon to horizon. Because the meteors are associated with the constellation Gemini, they will be most readily visible when the iconic star cluster is high in the sky. The show will begin around 9 or 10 p.m., and will reach its peak around 2 a.m. on Sunday the 15th.

Sports fields, golf courses, and beaches are among the most popular destinations for spectators to view the shower. Veteran’s Field (Chatham) and the Lawrence Road Baseball Field (Wellfleet) are likely to be opportune locations for observation. The Cape Cod National Seashore’s beaches are also sure to be a phenomenal location, as they offer unobstructed views of the sky without unnatural light pollution.

Next weekend’s shooting stars are likely to be even more breathtaking than most others, since they travel roughly “only” 22 miles per second. Although this may seem an astonishingly fast speed, it’s actually comparatively slow for a meteor. As a result, the “tails” that the meteors leave behind will last a few split seconds longer, and are expected to shine yellow, orange, and even blue. The “tails” do not remain in the sky, however. They fade away within a second or two, yet are beautiful if seen.

Meteors, or shooting stars, are not “falling stars,” as most people assume. Instead, they are roughly football-sized pieces of rock or dust that burn up upon entry into earth’s atmosphere. This occurs every December, as earth passes through a field of space debris left behind by what once was likely an asteroid. The debris is set ablaze nearly 30 miles above the earth as it enters the atmosphere, posing a negligible threat to our planet. Instead, we enjoy watching these pieces of debris streak across the sky in a sudden burst of light - a so-called “shooting star.”

The debris does not always burn up in the atmosphere. Basketball-sized pieces of space matter crash to the surface an average of once a month, with larger projectiles rarely reaching the ground. An exception was the “Chelyabinsk Meteor” that struck a remote part of Russia on Feb. 15. The massive stone weighed more than the Eiffel Tower, and injured over 1,600 people as it struck a frozen lake while traveling more than 50 times the speed of sound. Portions of the meteor will be used to construct medals for the 2014 Winter Olympics, which will be held in Sochi, Russia.

Fortunately, similar visitations are not expected next weekend. Instead, residents of the Cape and Islands will be treated to a dazzling sky show. Temperatures are expected to be quite chilly, so viewers are advised to dress accordingly. The next meteor shower to impact the region will occur on Jan. 3.

Matthew Cappucci is a junior at Sturgis Charter Public School in Hyannis, and plans on pursuing meteorology as a career. For more information on upcoming meteor showers, visit www.spaceweather.com.